Site Placements

In addition to language school, being a part of University Church, Bible studies, and eating, Thomas, Anna, and I work in after school programs and at a feeding center. A few weeks ago, we visited each site to discern and decide where we to serve for the coming year.

Thomas is teaching English classes at 새움 [sey-oom] children's center. It is the furthest bus ride away but happens to have a drum set, so he can jam...and maybe even teach some drumming too!!

with the violin and flute teachers at 새움

Anna is teaching and helping in the kitchen at 법동 [bop-dong] children's center.

  

 with Rev. Kim [the head honcho] and her daughter

the main classroom at 법동

I am working at 새나루 [seh-na-ru], a feeding center with an after school program/children's center upstairs. I am washing dishes and helping serve food to people who are homeless or cannot provide for themselves. Everyday the center serves at least 150 people dinner and delivers to about 50 people who are home-bound. Also, a nearby Lutheran church serves breakfast, and a Catholic church serves lunch! It is a really neat set up, and the food is pretty good too.

The delivery food is sent out in zip-lock-esque plastic containers in fabric bags - a system that makes quite a few dishes to wash but is much more sensible than sending out hundreds styrofoam boxes in plastic bags each week! And, washing dishes is something I actually can do to be helpful! If you're worried about the about the amount of water it takes to wash 200ish plastic containers, there is a very specific method to washing dishes and cleaning up that uses every drop of water as efficiently as possible, so don't fret.
 

Rice is scooped, soup is poured, and everyone gets a tray!  

I think I am starting to get the hang of the way things roll in the kitchen at 새나루 and now know where all most of the clean dishes go. The people in the kitchen are so nice and have been so patient with me. Being with them twice a week makes me really want to learn Korean. After washing dishes, scooping rice, and trying very hard not to get in the way, I go upstairs and eat dinner with children's center folks. Then I head up some more stairs to work with elementary and middle schoolers with English. Anna and Thomas also tag along once a week and help out in the feeding center.

introducing myself to the elementary schoolers

Also, Anna and I alternate going to 안산 [An-san] Library on Thursdays. We lead a "class" that started last year as sort of a 'YAVs read in English to Korean children' deal but has become a 'YAVs read in English with Korean women [and men] and then, in English, discuss current issues' deal. I seems like the moms got more into it than the children did last year and want to continue meeting to read and work on their conversational English. We met for the first time this past Thursday, and they were so so sooo nice! A few even brought their [super cute] kiddos! 

 안산 Library

 

HARRY POTTER IN KOREAN...somehow I doubt I will make it to that reading level, but I was still pumped to see my good buddy Harry!

Site Coordinators

These are our wonderful site coordinators. Well, Haejung is technically our site coordinator, but Simon isn't the type to miss out on anything fun. 

Simon and Haejung Park

The Parks were both born and raised in Korea and moved to the United States where they became citizens. After rearing two sons and a career in academia, they were called into the mission field. They served in Congo, Nepal, and are now back in South Korea. In addition to coordinating and taking care of us, Haejung works with Hannam University's chaplain's office and Simon does a lot of consulting and traveling for PC(USA).

on Chuseok with our host gifts...war eagle!

They live about a hundred yards away in a house that is also part of the missionary compound and are a combination of a host family and our bosses. In addition to scouting out places for us to work and helping us deal with the language barrier, they take us to the doctor if we are sick and invite us over for lunch and slurpees [banana and coffee smoothies…yum], just to name a few things...

 

they have also helped us figure out where the hot water went...twice

Partly because respecting elders is such a big deal in Korean culture and to help articulate our relationship, we call them Haejung 이모 and Uncle Simon. In Korean there are more [and more specific] names for family members than in English. The word for maternal aunt is 이모 [pronounced 'emo']. Because 
이모[s] are typically very close to their nieces and nephews and because Haejung 이모 flows well, we have a Haejung 이모 and an Uncle Simon. They're great!

and I think they're pretty cute too!

University Church

Each Sunday, Thomas, Anna, Simon, and I take turns leading 'Time For Young Disciples' at church. The first part is a mini sermon, and then we have youth group with middle and high schoolers. While the short sermon is in English [obviously and thankfully], it is in front of the whole congregation, which is rather intimidating. A lot of the church members speak English, but since it is not their native language, we must speak clearly and slowly. Last Sunday, I spoke about teamwork and Proverbs 27:17. I really tried to speak clearly but was so nervous that I definitely did not speak slowly…at all. Nor did I breathe. Next time will be better. For sure.     

Thomas, Anna, and I with some of the awesome Youth Group!